Will the England football team choose the strongest candidate?

Once again England are on the lookout for a new manager, and once again there are calls from the masses of 'it has to be an Englishman' following on from the most recent failure from a foreign manager. I have always felt I'm in the minority on this debate, I've worked in recruitment for some time and have always believed the job should go to the strongest candidate and certainly nationality wouldn't come into the equation at any stage.

Obviously the English national team is a special job, a unique opportunity which very few people will ever be considered for. You need a great deal of resilience, tactical knowledge, bravery to make the important calls and also you have to be at the right stage of your career. Over the past decade there has been no English manager that matches this criteria which is why we have had to look abroad, when we tried to force the issue we ended up with a completely unsuitable candidate like Steve McClaren.

On paper, Fabio Capello was an excellent candidate - he had an exemplary record in several different countries including league titles in Spain and Italy. He was at a great age to take up international management, takes a no-nonsense approach that many felt was lacking in his predecessors Sven Goran Eriksson and Steve McClaren. The one thing that Fabio did lack (aside from the ability to speak the native language) was a knowledge of the English game, and an understanding what makes the English players tick, something that was clear for all to see in South Africa.

I've never felt the English manager has to be English, but having watched the highs and the many lows of England performances I am now of the belief the manager has to have a knowledge of the working game, something that Eriksson and Capello lacked.

Harry Redknapp is the obvious choice, as he clearly has the knowledge of the English game, he has a fantastic recent record transforming Portsmouth into an FA Cup winning outfit and leading Tottenham break the top four hoodoo. I would also not rule out Guus Hiddink - he knows the World Cup format better than anyone, even managing South Korea to the semi finals in 2002, this is complimented with a spell at Chelsea where he won the FA cup while in interim charge. The only other possible candidate who ticks all the boxes would be José Mourinho a.k.a 'The Special One', but as much as my mother would love that appointment, he's made it clear he wouldn't consider international management for some years to come.